Pump.



PATENTED FEB. 20, 1906. P. H. LYNCH.

PUMP.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 20,1905.

.LIIIIIMIIIIIHIISI 5 W i m 2 v I 1 i I HIE! I III I A I IIIII) I f l I II a I lH-lllhl-lllll UNITED STATES PATENT FFTCE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 20, 1906.

Application filed February 20, 1905. Serial No. 246,470

To all whom b it may concern.-

Be it known that LPATRIQK H. LYNcH, residing at New York, in the countyof New York and State of New York, have-invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Valveless Pumps, of which the following is a full,clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to pumping apparatus. One of the objects thereofis to provide efficient apparatus of the above nature in which thenecessity for the use of valves or equivalent devices is done away with.

Another object is to provide pumping apparatus which is reliable inaction and may be started with speed and certainty.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed outhereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction,combinations of elements, and arrangement of parts, which will beexemplified in the apparatus hereinafter described and the scope of theapplication of which will be indicated in the following claims.

The accompanying drawing is a diagrammatic representation of one ofvarious possible embodiments of my invention.

In order to render clearer certain features of my invention, it may herebe noted that with pumping apparatus of many types now in common use itis necessary upon starting the same that a considerable period of timeelapse before the water is brought to the desired level. This delay isalways annoying and, under certain conditions, as in feeding boilerspositioned above the source of supply, it maybe serious. Another defectwith many pumps now in common use is that the same are easily affectedby the condition and quality of the water upon which they act, and anygrit or other foreign matter therein is not only likely to cut thesurfaces of the valves and valve-seats, but in certain cases, as inpumping foul drainage-water, the pump may be so clogged by the sedimentdeposited therein as to render it inoperative. The above and otherdefects are obviated in constructions of the following nature.

Referring now tothe drawing, there is shown at 1 a storage tank orreservoir provided, as at 2, with an outlet or discharge pipe controlledby the gate 3. It may here benoted that the term gate is used throughout this description and the following claims in a broad sense asdenoting any means whereby the passage through a conduit of any form maybe obstructed Leading into the reservoir or tank 1 is a supply-pipe 4,controlled by a gate 5 for a purpose hereinafter described. Passingthrough the walls of this tank and adapted to discharge therein is apipe or conduit 6, terminating at its lower end near the bottom of alower chamber or tank 7. The latter is preferably of closed form and maybe provided with a manhole and other devices of like nature, if desired,the same not being here shown, as they form no part of the presentinvention.

Connected into the tank 7 is another pipe 8, which passes through thewalls of the tank and is adapted to discharge into the upper portionthereof. This pipe passes downwardly into the lower portion of a tank 9,substantially indentical with the tank 7 and connected in turn by pipe10 with a tank 11, which communicates by pipe 12 with the source ofsupply 13, the latter pipe having positioned therein a suitablecontrolling-gate 14. It is to be understood that the showing as regardsthese tanks is merely diagrammatic and that an indefinite number thereofmay be positioned between the reservoir 1 and the source of supply 13,the same being connected as indicated in the case of the threeintermediate tanks above described. Reservoir 1 in this embodiment isalso provided with supply-pipes 15 and 16, adapted to dischargethereinto, these pipes being respectively connected with series of tanks17 and 18, interconnected by pipes 19 and 20. This arrangement of eachof these series is substantially identical with that first described,and they are respectively connected with the source of supply 13 bysuction-pipes 21 and 22, having positioned therein gates 23 and 24.

It will thus be seen that in the illustrative embodiment hereindescribed there are three distinct series of tanks interposed betweenthe source of supply and the upper reservoir, each series'havingindependent connections and being adapted to operate independently when,as on account of the breakage of parts or other reason, one or more ofthe other series is rendered inoperative. It will be understood that thenumber of these connecting series may be indefinitely increased, theform shown being merely illustrative of this feature of my invention,which Ihave found to be of marked value.

An important feature in my invention is embodied in the arrangement ofthe tanks with reference one to another, whereby each tank of eachseries is interposed between and rests substantially in contact with atank of one of the remaining series upon each side.

In this manner the distance between the tanks is maintainedsubstantially constant and may be that found to be most efficient forthe working of the apparatus, and yet the entire space between thesource of supply and the reservoir is utilized. Another feature ofimportance in this arrangement is that by virtue of the closely packeddisposition of the several tanks the total area of their exposedsurfaces is small relative to the total volume inclosed, the value ofthis being more clearly set forth hereinafter. The exposed portions ofthe several conduits and of the several tanks are preferably surroundedby packing 25 of any desired material having a low heat-conductingpower, thus reducing to a minimum the cooling effect of the outer airupon the contents of the entire apparatus.

The method of use of the above-described apparatus is as follows:Assuming the several receptacles and conduits to be empty, as when theapparatus is used for the first time, the gate 5 is opened and livesteam admitted through the pipe 4 from any desired source. This steamrapidly fills the several tanks and connectir g-pipes and drives out theair therein, as through the gates 14, 23, and 24,which are afterwardclosed, and gate 5 being also closed the steam is permitted to condense.In this manner a vacuum is formed in the entire system which may beunder favorable circumstances rendered almost complete. When this stateof affairs has been attained, the gates 14, 23, and 24 are opened andwater is rapidly drawn into the lowermost tanks 1 1, 17, and 18 and whensaid tanks are substantially filled is, through the corresponding pipes10, 19, and 20, drawn into the next higher tanks, and thus through theseveral above-described conr ections into the uppermost tank orreservoir 1. The pump is then in normal working condition and willremain operative until the vacuum has been broken or .the internalpressure raised to such an extent as to prevent further drawing of thewater. Reservoir 1 is thenfound to be nearly full, and the contents maybe drawn off through the discharge -pipe 2 and any desired dispositionmade of the same. The apparatus is now in normal inoperative condition,each tank being filled to a level above the lower ends of thecorresponding pipes leading upwardly therefrom, for, as will be clearfrom the above description, when the water-level reaches the lower endsof these pipes the tanks next above the same connected therewith will beunable to draw more water. Thus upon the steam being driven in, as abovedescribed, the same is permitted to condense, this action beingfacilitated by the relatively large surfaces of the several tanks, andwater is immediately drawn from each series into the reservoir 1, thesystem being started with substantially no waste of time, as each tankis in condition to supply water to the tank next above the same and isin turn supplied from the tank below. The only time required to startthe system is that consumed by the water in rising the comparativelyshort distance from one tank to that next above connected therewith.

Among the advantages of the arrangement of the tanks above indicatedarising from the compactness and other desirable features above pointedout is the fact that there is substantially no waste of the heat of thesteam, the same being employed in heating the water drawn and the wallsof the several chambers or receptacles holding the same, thus renderingthis pumping apparatus pecul iarly adapted for use as a means of feedingboilers. In this case substantially none of the energy of the live steamis wasted, the same being employed in heating the water, thus renderingthe entire apparatus economical to a high degree.

It will thus be seen that I have provided an apparatus well adapted toaccomplish the objects of this invention and possessing many advantages,some of which have been pointed out and some of which can be appreciatedonly by practical use. The form of pumping apparatus above described isnot only quick in starting, but is entirely reliable in action, as, onaccount of the short distance between the successive tanks connected onewith another, each tank readily pumps from that next below the same. Thecondensation of steam, moreover, is rapid, owing to the relatively largecondensing area. Moreover, the apparatus when used for feeding boilersor similar purposes, as above explained, acts as a feed-water heater,thus avoiding a waste of the heat of the steam. It may also be notedthat there are no complicated parts, the entire apparatus being of thesimplest and most inexpensive construction, and that the same may be runwithout the use of skilled labor, supervision being substantiallyunneccessary after the pump is started. The advantageous feature wherebyno valves or other parts susceptible to the action of dirt or grit are'used has been already pointed out, this feature being of such prominencein this connection that not only is the apparatus unharmed by ordinarilyfoul water, but it is operative when there is such an extreme amount ofcomminuted foreign matter therein as to form what is commonly termedmud. The value of this last-mentioned feature in cases of pumpingdrainagewater or in reclaiming or dredging operations will be obvious.

,, A. Although the above means of producing a vacuum possessesadvantages which are peculiar to itself, nevertheless other means may beused and some of the advantageous features of my invention retained withapparatus in which the vacuum is produced by other means.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and manyapparently widely different embodiments of my invention could be madewithout departing from the scope thereof, I intend that all mattercontained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawingshall be inter preted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is

1. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a series ofreceptacles, a connection between each of said receptacles and thereceptacle above the same, said connections projecting within and abovethe lowermost portions of said receptacles, a connectingpipe between thelowermost receptacle and a source of supply, and means adapted toconduct steam to the uppermost of said receptacles.

2. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a series ofreceptacles, pipes connecting each of said receptacles with a lowerreceptacle and means adapted to produce a vacuum within saidreceptacles, said pipes projecting within the said receptacles andterminating intermediate the upper and lower walls thereof.

3. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a series ofreceptacles, pipes connecting each of said receptacles with a receptaclebelow the same, each of said pipes projecting within one of said lowerreceptacles and terminating within the lower portion thereof, a sourceof supply, a pipe connecting the lowermost receptacle with the source ofsupply, and means for conducting steam to said receptacles. j

4. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a series oftanks, suction-pipes connecting each of said tanks with a tank below thesame in said series and ending intermediate the upper and lower walls ofsaid tanks, and means adapted to cause a sub stantially simultaneouspumping of said tanks from those next below in the series through saidsuction-pipes.

5. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a source ofsupply, a reservoir, and two series of receptacles interposed betweenthe same, each of said receptacles be ing connected with one below thesame, connections between the uppermost receptacles and said reservoirand connections between the lowermost receptacles and said source ofsupply, the receptacles of one of said series alternating in positionwith the receptacles of the other thereof and being adjacent thereto.

6. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a source ofsupply, a reservoir, a plurality of series of receptacles interposedbetween said. source of supply and said. reservoir, a connection betweenthe uppermost receptacle of each series and said reservoir, a connectionbetween the lowermost receptacle of each series and said source ofsupply, intermediate connections between said receptacles of eachseries, and means adapted to reduce the pressure in said receptacles,the receptacles of each series alternating in position with receptaclesof all of the other series.

7. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a source ofsupply, a reservoir, a plurality of series of receptacles interposedbetween said source of supply and said reservoir, a connection betweenthe uppermost receptacle of each series and said reservoir, a connectionbetween the lowermost receptacle of each series and said source ofsupply, intermediate connections between said receptacles of eachseries, and means ada ted to reduce the pressurein said receptac es, thereceptacles of each series alternating in position with receptacles ofall of the other series and having their walls substantially in contactwith the walls of the receptacles adjacent thereto.

8. In apparatus of theclass described, in combination, a reservoir, asource of supply, a plurality of series of receptacles interposedbetween said reservoir and said source of supply, connections betweenthe uppermost receptacle of each series and said reservoir, connectionsbetween the lowermost receptacle of each of said series and said sourceof supply, connections between said receptacles each receptacle of eachof said series alternating in position with receptacles of all of theother series and having their walls substantially in contact with thewalls of the contiguous receptacles and means adapted to cause each ofsaid receptacles to draw water from that immediately below the same insaid series.

9. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, areservoir, asource of supply, a plurality of series of receptacles interposedbetween said reservoir and said source of supply, connections betweenthe uppermost receptacles of each of said series and said reserervoir,connections between the lowermost receptacles of each of said series andsaid source of supply, intermediate connections between the receptaclesof each of said series, the connection from each of said receptacles tothat next below terminating at the lower portion of the lowerreceptacle, and means for conducting steam to said reservoir, each ofsaid receptacles alternating in position with receptacles of allof theother series and ITO having its walls substantially in contact with thewalls of the contiguous receptacles.

10. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a series ofreceptacles, pipes connecting each of said receptacles with a receptacle below the same, said first-mentioned pipes projecting withinsaid receptacles and terminating intermediate the upper and lowerportions thereof, a sourceof supply, a pipe connecting the lowermostreceptacle with the source of supply, and means for forcing air fromsaid receptacles.

11. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a series ofreceptacles, pipes connecting each of said receptacles with a receptaclebelow the same, said pipes projecting within and terminatingintermediate the upper and lower portions thereof, a source of supply, apipe connecting the lowermost receptacle with the source of supply andmeans for forcing air from one of said receptacles.

12. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a reservoir, asource of supply, a plurality of series of receptacles inter osedbetween said reservoir and said source 0 supply, connections between theup ermost receptacle of each series and said reservoir, connectionsbetween the lowermost recepta cle of each of said series and said sourceof supply, and means adapted to force air from sai reservoir, eachreceptacle of each of said series alternating in position withreceptacles of all of the other series, and having their wallssubstantially in contact with the walls of the contiguous receptacles.

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature in the presence of twowitnesses.

PATRICK H. LYNCH.

Witnesses:

H. M. SEAMANs, E. FOSTER.

